Orc Book Recommendation

[00:00:00] Laura: Hello, Becky. Welcome to RetroNext Podcast. Hi, Laura. I am so happy to be here. So happy to have you back. So today we're talking all things Orcs, which is , a super niche of a monster, alien, otherworldly, paranormal romance. So niche, but it's a large group of books and you're my resident org expert who would have thought that's her topic.

Tell us what you've been up to since we last spoke.

[00:00:30] Becky: Well, since we last spoke, well, first of all, happy or October. Yes. Oh my gosh, it's October. What I've been up to. Yeah, I've just been working on my podcast, too stupid to live. And, all last month I. Got the, I got my Orc assignment from you.

And I was just knee deep. I was knee deep in a lot of books because I do have like my go to Orc authors and I was like, I need to expand. So September was all about just expanding, discovering new Orc authors, [00:01:00] discovering new Orc worlds. And I have to say it was one of my better reading months. I mean, except for the ones on my podcast.

They're great. Yeah, no, but you know what I mean?

[00:01:09] Laura: Personal again. I am so glad that the reading assignment actually worked well, that you're just like, had a pleasant and good reading month. Because sometimes it can be a toss up. Sometimes it can be like, Oh my gosh, what the heck am I reading?

[00:01:20] Becky: Yeah. It's like, I love orcs. I love orcs. But like, you know how, I don't know if you're the same way, but like, You have a craving for a certain kind of book and you just stick to the authors that, and sometimes like when you're, and when you're doing it personally, and it's not for like a podcast or for a show, you're kind of just sticking to that same author.

And it does like, you do have to be like, Oh wait, there are other authors out there. And I think that's, which is the, to say the very least. So it was like really nice to force myself to kind of just really explore what was out there.

[00:01:53] Laura: Yes. So talk to us about orcs. What are we talking about?

What are orcs? First things first, let's define them. And then let's [00:02:00] talk about like, what do you love about the genre?

[00:02:03] Becky: Sure. Yeah. So orcs, it's actually very interesting. And I think a lot of people originally kind of associate orcs with Lord of the Rings. They're kind of the minions for kind of the villains in Lord of the Rings.

I think a lot of people associate them with like, kind of Video games, like I think it's Baldur's Gate or like War of Warcraft, so they're just like kind of things you fight as you're playing. But I did realize that orcs are brought up like in like the Tale of Beowulf and Grendel and stuff.

Like people thought I think Grendel was described in kind of like using the old Middle English kind of thing, like as an orc. So it is very interesting about like, well, what's the Like the origin of the orchid, I can't, I'm not going to do this origin of word. So for me, my own fascination came with orcs from watching Lord of the Rings, just because they were just these like nameless cogs and the evil villains machine, they were just kind of there.

[00:03:00] And like, I don't know if you've spent a lot of time just sitting silently while someone you have a crush on is playing video games and you're just watching. But that was like the majority of my teenage and college years. And so just watching these, just like watching like guys I have crushes on, like, just like fight orcs and they're just like fighting this orc to get to the next level.

These orcs were so nameless. And so like, they're just there kind of just to Not really, like, just be the thwart. Like they, it's like, they're nameless. They're, they have no like purpose. I don't know. There was just something very fascinating about it. So when I discovered that like romance authors were kind of incorporated, like we're making these monsters in particular, the romantic lead, I was like, this is fascinating.

[00:03:43] Laura: Yes. And so what was your first

[00:03:45] Becky: Orc book? Do you remember? Yeah, my first Orc book actually was Ruby Dixon. She has a standalone Orc book called the Half Orcs, Maiden Bride. And I don't know if there's any other in the series, but I have read [00:04:00] Ruby Dixon from Ice Planet Barbarians. And I had a friend who also loved that book and she recommended, Oh, Ruby Dixon has a book.

So that was kind of like my first foray into like, Orc world and just how like sexually fluid and open and unashamed they are.

[00:04:17] Laura: Yes. And so talk to us about what can we expect with like reading some of the Orcs and it may shift between authors and ways that they look at it. But are there any common themes that we can see from Orc books that you may notice?

By creating a bunch of them.

[00:04:31] Becky: Yeah, like, so there are like different types of like monster romances. You've got your sweet, you've got your dark, but I feel like there's a lot of relatability in terms of like, orcs have very, have strong cultural roots. And, like, I think in a lot of these books, like, you are dealing with this, like, Or kind of struggling to not struggling, but just this inner conflict of adapting to modern times, adapting to their human love interest versus honoring their, [00:05:00] parents and familial ancestry.

So I do, I think in like across all of the genres, you kind of see that you have like things about like acceptance and interspecies dating, which, I think is a one to one. These, with today's times of just finding your identity and just like going off on your own and things like that.

Yeah. Yeah.

[00:05:21] Laura: All right. Let's get to the recommendations. You have a couple of books to recommend to get started. We're not giving you the full list. The full list is available on the blog and the sub stack. But just be on the lookout, but let's just give us a teaser. What should we get?

What do you recommend to get started with the orgs?

[00:05:36] Becky: Sure. Well, there's everything like. There's anything and everything. I think that, you can, if you want to start off with something sweet, I do love the Honey Phillips Single Mom and the Orc. I think it's called Sweet Monster Treats. I think that's the series, but I just, if you, like, if you love a grumpy sunshine and you like the grumpy, like, falling immediately in love with an adorable, innocent baby, [00:06:00] like, An orc in that like role is so fantastic.

I like don't usually seek out the idea of like, Oh, the guys, suddenly bonding with this baby and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But then like all of a sudden just reading this orc protective of this innocent, adorable little baby, I was like. Now I see the appeal of the genre with humans.

Yes, you're like, okay, I'm better than the man right now. Exactly. Yeah. And I mean, I just think maybe it does have to do with like kind of the look of an orc like orcs I think are in the narrative, like are described as ugly, and are like very, just like the most monstrous. And so I think just the dichotomy of seeing something that like, maybe we, as we, as in like our narrative shows us something that's the most dangerous, just cradling a baby, just, I don't know.

I'm not that I'm ever gonna have kids anytime soon, but I did feel my ovaries [00:07:00] warm up a little bit. I'm not going to lie.

[00:07:02] Laura: No, we got a single mom. A single mom who works two jobs and an org.

[00:07:07] Becky: Man, she had so many jobs, had to, fix up this thing, like, it was just, it's funny cause like those storylines, I'm okay why does like this child's childhood have to be complete with two parent, that I'm always like, but this book work this, it didn't really kind of like delve into kind of the societal implications of that plot line.

[00:07:27] Laura: There we go. Awesome. What's your next recommendation?

[00:07:30] Becky: Well, my next recommendation was going to be Forged by Magic, which I know Francesca recommended on your stream yesterday, I think. Yes. I was going to recommend it because it does feature a female orc and I do find I could be wrong but just like in terms of, it's hard to find like a female orc lead and like a human man, I think that's something, I don't know, it just is what it is and so I saw that and it was kind of like the closest, I thought it was such a cute book [00:08:00] But I will say I will replace that just to give you an option just so we're not repeating recommendations, Orc bots by emma allison.

I just started this series It's very interesting and now it doesn't feature An orc female lead but i'm hoping one day it does because this book does introduce a lot of awesome female orcs in their culture and they have this little community and like You It was just like, it was almost like I wanted to, like, I mean, I wanted like a golden girl style sitcom with like the orc, the female orcs in that book.

And just like see that as a TV show, because it was just, there was a sisterhood of orcs. And I was like, yeah,

[00:08:42] Laura: I am excited to try this one for sure. I'm like, okay, you got sister orcs and you got. Hopefully a series so you can just dive into it.

[00:08:51] Becky: Exactly. Yeah. I mean, granted, they are side characters. The main plot point is, kind of a heterosexual love story.

It's this [00:09:00] future dystopia. You got that going on. But for some reason, I was like, I love these lady orcs and how they all support each other.

But they're still so like, gruff and like, prone to anger. They're still very much like, monster selves, but they're also like you're my best friend. I support everything you do. Swords, like, it's just like, it's perfect. It's just okay. So I, so Finley Fenn, I think was the first kind of, after I read the Ruby Dixon book, my friend then recommended Finley Fenn and then that, Kind of was like, oh, this is the author for me when I would want an orc book.

I would read one of the orcs horn series So I feel like it'd be remiss if I didn't recommend my favorite finley fenn book, which is the duchess and the orc I reread it last week and like i'm like was in tears on my couch [00:10:00] because just the there's like a There's like a mental health representation in here, which I feel like it's very interesting to kind of see how mental health and neurodiversity has been portrayed in fantasy novels.

And I felt that this book was really gutsy in the fact that, like, you have this female. Female main character who's like accused of being like hysterical, whatever that means but at the same time It's also clear that she has very like relatable mental health issues and singing like work a mountain You know being able to understand that This is a health issue.

You're accepted. All that stuff. Just seeing like an orc, just tell a woman with anxiety that she's perfect. Just the way she is. I'm like, this is a fantasy come true. Like it was just, it's so funny because like that, like I do think people consider that world that to be more. I was going to say dork romance, dark romance, or dark [00:11:00] fantasy, which it is, I think there's a lot of, there is a lot of heavy themes it's, there's trigger warnings and things like that.

But at the same time, I just like felt that one moment where. Just this woman being accepted for all of her flaws after everything she's been through and he's saying it in like his orc voice of just like my little puppet is perfect. I'm just like,

[00:11:25] Laura: this is so beautiful. Oh my gosh, I'm adding this one for sure.

Like, you're just adding more and more books for me to read, which is great. It's the whole purpose.

[00:11:35] Becky: Yeah. I feel like sometimes when I go on these things, like half the time it's me just like writing down book title. I'm just like, what's that book? Let me da. Yeah. I know that you like your Mafia romance, so there is an Orc Mafia in Baltimore.

Oh my gosh! Don't worry. No, it's actually it's, I would say it's. It's a mafia boss adjacent. Do you consider in your mafia books, [00:12:00] like if it's someone who was in the mafia and they're trying to leave and it's the story of them defecting, like, does that still fall into, okay, then this is mafia.

Once you're in the family, you're always in the family. I mean, you don't need to tell me that. I know.

But basically this is it's called Orc Boss and it's about this very, like, I listened to the audio book at, or did I? Yes, I did. I listened to the audio book, and it's a Scottish orc, so he has a very sexy, like, Scottish accent, so I do recommend the audio book but he's, like, trying to kind of get revenge for what the main crime family, like, did to his family a woman who just he's, Who I related to, or it was a fey woman, actually, who I related to too much.

Just gets caught up in the action. You do have your accidental kidnapping kind of, you're kind of, towing the line with kind of the mafia tropes. But I do think if you like a mafia romance I highly, it's very funny and it's very palatable for [00:13:00] kidnapping trope, I think like,

[00:13:02] Laura: so yeah. I am adding this and there are sort of, just some mafia.

You have me at that. Is there a kidnapping or potential kidnapping? So it is a

[00:13:12] Becky: kidnapping. Like if you're going there, if this orc were technically on trial, like if I were a lawyer on the prosecution side, it would legally be a kidnapping. But on the defense's side, Once you get to know their story, it's like, well, I see why he had to do that.

It was just, you just have to understand. And I, yeah.

[00:13:38] Laura: I still have a captive captor or just loosely captive captor, romance. I love them so much. I would not have that. I don't wish that among myself or others around me, but in a romance, it's just so true. Juicy and delicious and just fine and tension.

You're like, you're not supposed to like them. And then he's like, Oh, but they're treating me better than the [00:14:00] other people in my life,

[00:14:01] Becky: yeah. Like he, she's going through this horrible breakup and she can't get over it. And I think that's one thing I related to of just like, just being so mad at yourself that you can't get over an ex, and she's like dealing with that and then is like literally kidnapped by an orc who's treating her way better, and just.

Seeing her, I'm like, this is great. I love this. I love this. This is great. I love these recommendations. So yeah, any other or yeah, right now I am working my way through Girls Weekend by CM Nescasta. That's kind of, takes place in the world of Morning Glory Milking Farm. It's about three elf best friends who go to an Orokinutis resort just to get laid, but they all end up meeting, their kind of potential, what's going to be their potential, soulmate, I'm assuming. It's really interesting because the book has three protagonists. So it's like three different love stories and it's like a series of four books. I don't think the fourth one's out yet. So I'm finishing up the third [00:15:00] book and you are kind of like seeing the evolution of these relationships and these like elf women trying to, discover their identities.

And also like, it's a good story again about female friendship. You are more fascinated in their character growth than like, Kind of the sex of it all which is there and it's sexy and it's hot and it's good But I'm just like I again it felt like it was like reading like Like like it was like Broad City or like insecure those TV shows except it was like elves and orcs and they're in this adorable town just having the most amazing sex of all time.

[00:15:36] Laura: I am excited. I have this on audio, I think, so I should definitely bump it up. I think that you have your female friendships and just kind of like the evolution of the relationship as you go through the series. Sometimes you need a series to deep dive and just like read them and just be in that world and be best friends with those characters and never letting them go.

Yeah,

[00:15:56] Becky: and they're like, honestly, like Oddly more [00:16:00] relatable as humans, cause like, I think, when we were talking earlier about having to do like adult stuff and before we started recording and like, they're they set out on this, like having, they said on their journey, having like certain expectations and those expectations are met, but they're not fully satisfied.

And I think that's such an adult kind of journey, when it's like you finally have freedom, so like. Accomplish your dreams, get what you want, only to realize like, oh, that wasn't for me, and I was like, oh, yeah, there's good life lessons in there.

[00:16:33] Laura: There are

[00:16:33] Becky: some life lessons. Becky, talk to us about your podcast.

Yeah. So my podcast is called Too Stupid to Live. I review romance novels, 5 and under. Usually the weirder the better, of course, but I also have special episodes where I chat with Your favorite and soon to be favorite authors And yeah, it's just a lot of fun If you just want to hear me and some very intriguing and hilarious guests to talk about all kinds of romance [00:17:00] novels I definitely recommend it Awesome.

Becky, tell us where you're hanging out live. Yeah. So the podcast itself is on all of the social medias at TSTL podcast, and I'm on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, which I guess is all the social medias at Beckles212. Awesome, Becky. Thank you for being in the show. Thank you for having me. This was so fun.